[0:00] Lord thee, my God, I'll e'erly seek my soul the first for thee.
[0:18] My flesh longs in a dry parts land wherein no waters be, that I thy power may behold and brightness of thy face, as I have seen thee here to fall within thy holy place.
[0:59] Since better is thy love than life, my lips thee praise shall give.
[1:14] I in thy name will lift my hands and flesh thee while I live.
[1:28] Even as with marrow and with fire my soul shall fill it be, then shall my mouth with joyful lips sing praises unto thee.
[1:56] When I do thee upon my bed, remember with delight, and when on thee I meditate in watches of the night.
[2:25] In shadow of thy wings I'll joy, for thou my help hast been.
[2:40] My soul thee follows hard and me, thy right hand doth sustain.
[2:53] Amen. Now let's read from God's Word. We're reading from the Gospel of John, chapter 19, beginning at verse 17.
[3:06] Gospel of John, chapter 19. We'll read from verse 17 through to verse 37. So they took Jesus, and he went out bearing his own cross to the place called the place of a skull, which in Aramaic is called Golgotha.
[3:34] There they crucified him with two others, one on either side, and Jesus between them. Pilate also wrote an inscription and put it on the cross. It read, Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.
[3:47] Many of the Jews read this inscription, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near to the city, and it was written in Aramaic, in Latin, and in Greek. So the chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate, Do not write the King of the Jews, but rather this man said, I am King of the Jews.
[4:05] Pilate answered, What I have written, I have written. When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they took his garments and divided them into four parts, one part for each soldier, also his tunic.
[4:18] But the tunic was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom. So they said to one another, Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it to see whose it shall be. This was to fulfill the scripture which says, They divided my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots.
[4:36] So the soldiers did these things, but standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother, and his mother's sister, Mary, the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, Woman, behold your son.
[4:54] Then he said to the disciple, Behold your mother. And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home. After this, Jesus, knowing that all was now finished, said, To fulfill the scripture, I thirst.
[5:08] A jar full of sour wine stood there, so he put a sponge full of the sour wine on a hyssop branch, and held it to his mouth. When Jesus had received the sour wine, he said, It is finished.
[5:19] And he bowed his head and gave up his spirit. Since it was the day of preparation, so that the bodies would not remain on the cross on the Sabbath, for that Sabbath was a high day, the Jews asked Pilate that their legs might be broken, that they might be taken away.
[5:37] So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and of the other who had been crucified with him. But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs.
[5:48] But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once there came out blood and water. He who saw it has borne witness. His testimony is true.
[6:00] He knows that he is telling the truth, that you also may believe. For these things took place, that the scripture might be fulfilled. Not one of his bones will be broken.
[6:10] And again, another scripture says, they will look on him whom they have pierced. And so on, may the Lord again add his blessing to a reading, that portion of his word.
[6:27] Now let's sing in Psalm number 51, Psalm 51, and sing Psalms on page 68. And we're singing to a tune, Ottawa.
[6:40] Verses 7 to 15 of Psalm 51. We're going to look at a connection in the passage we read in verse 34, between the death of Jesus and one aspect of its purpose or benefit for us that we are cleansed from our sins through the atonement that Jesus has rendered.
[7:07] And the application of that redemption to us involves, at the very heart of it, the forgiveness of sin, the cleansing of our sin. And here David's great prayer includes seeking that cleansing from God.
[7:20] Cleanse with hyssop, purify me. I'll be whiter than the snow. Let the bones you crushed be joyful. May I joy and gladness know. From my failure hide your face.
[7:33] Blot out all my wickedness. And so on through to verse 15. Cleanse with hyssop, purify me. Cleanse with hyssop, purify me.
[7:53] I'll be whiter than the snow. Let the bones you crushed be joyful.
[8:05] May I joy and gladness know. From my failure hide your face.
[8:20] Blot out all my wickedness. Lord, create a pure heart in me.
[8:32] And I'll stand past mine dream. Do not take your spirit from me.
[8:44] Cast me not away from you. Give me back the joy I have.
[8:58] Keep my willings fed. Be glad. Then I'll teach your way to sinners.
[9:11] Rebels will turn back to you. Free me from blood guilt, my Savior.
[9:23] God most merciful and true. And I'll praise your righteousness.
[9:36] Rebels will turn back to you. And I'll praise your righteousness. Each my lips your name to bless. Let's turn back to you. Let's turn back this morning to John chapter 19.
[9:50] Looking especially at the words of verse 34. verse 34. Where we're taken to the cross. And to the immediate aftermath of Christ's death on the cross.
[10:06] Verse 33. The soldiers came. And when they came to Jesus, they saw that he was already dead. So they did not break his legs. But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear.
[10:17] And at once there came out blood and water. Both our services today, we're looking in English services at the coming communion next Lord's Day.
[10:32] And seeking to do something by way of preparation for that. So we're looking especially at aspects of the death of Jesus. As we find that here. And tonight we're going to look at it from Hebrews chapter 5.
[10:46] Now the timing of God, of course, is always absolutely right as far as he's concerned. Not only is it the case with these events in Scripture. But also with events in our own lives.
[10:58] Although at times it's difficult sometimes to actually comprehend or understand. what exactly he's doing or why he's doing it. When he's doing it. But nevertheless we know from Scripture that God's program is set.
[11:11] God's appointments with our lives. In our lives are himself in his wisdom arranging our lives for us. And it's interesting here that when it came to the death of Jesus.
[11:23] It coincided very significantly with the Passover time in Jerusalem. When the lamb, the Passover lamb would be sacrificed. And of course Jesus himself as he comes to fulfill all the symbolism of the Passover lamb.
[11:39] Is put to death at that particular time. And also you find here that this Sabbath was a high day in the Jewish calendar.
[11:51] And so the arrangement was made that they would be sure the bodies would not remain on the cross on the Sabbath. Isn't it interesting and isn't it telling the attitude of those who wish to get rid of Jesus.
[12:04] There had absolutely no scruples whatsoever about putting him to death. And yet they had a lot of scruples about their religious ceremonies. There's a lesson in that for us as well of course.
[12:16] But here is one of the soldiers. When the soldiers came they would break the legs of those who were on the cross. Because the way that they were hanging on the cross. A lot of the weight was actually on their legs.
[12:29] So if they broke their legs. If they weren't quite dead. It's rather gruesome I know. But this is what the Bible describes for us. And it's important that we take account of every aspect of the Lord's sufferings.
[12:40] Physical as well as spiritual. As the Bible sets them out for us. As they broke the legs. If they weren't quite dead then sinking down of course. They would soon expire under the weight of their own body.
[12:54] When they came to Jesus they saw that he was already dead. It was obvious to them he was already dead. But then one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear. Whether it was his intention really just to absolutely make sure that he was dead.
[13:07] Or what his motive was we don't know. But John records here for us that at once immediately there came out blood and water.
[13:18] And he tells us that he who saw it has borne witness. We take it that this was John himself. And his testimony is true. In other words he's bearing testimony in this passage of his gospel.
[13:29] To the reality of Jesus' death. To what he saw. And even to the finer detail of this water and blood coming from the side of Jesus. The moment the soldier pierced his side with the spear.
[13:44] And in fact the fourth gospel here. John's gospel. Is really one of the later books of the New Testament to be written. So you can say that this gospel is John's mature thought.
[13:56] About Jesus and about his death. And its significance. As well as of course his resurrection. But John's theology is so full of rich symbolism.
[14:08] He uses things that we know of in our ordinary course of life. Light. Darkness. Water. Bread. Shepherds. And he uses these as Jesus himself used them.
[14:23] To convey the theology about the person of Jesus. And the death of Jesus. And he does the same here. Because when you read here that blood and water came from the side of Jesus.
[14:34] You immediately think. Well John uses these two elements. Blood and water very significantly. He speaks about water in different ways. In this gospel itself.
[14:44] And when you go to his first epistle. As we'll see. We'll take a few verses from that. To just reinforce what's being said here in John 19. You can see that he also there mentions blood and water.
[14:57] And that these were of spiritual significance to John. So we're taking it that the reason he recorded this detail. Is that they were significant in their religious or spiritual symbolism.
[15:10] Now we have to be careful not to stretch things too far. So we're going to depend muchly on how John himself uses blood and water. In our thoughts on it today.
[15:20] But he talks about this being a testimony. A testimony to the death that Jesus died. He has borne witness. This testimony is true.
[15:31] And he knows that he's telling the truth. That you also may believe. That's the thrust of his gospel. That's the thrust of his using these details here. So that we will believe.
[15:44] And believe means believe in this Jesus. Who died this death. And we want to apply this as well to the Lord's Supper.
[15:54] In our anticipation of it. And again try and see where that connection or these connections take place. So I want to look at three things especially. Here first of all is evidence. That Jesus truly died.
[16:07] Died physically that is. As well as other aspects of death. Here secondly are two symbols of why Jesus died. The blood and the water.
[16:19] And here thirdly is a direct connection with the Lord's Supper. First of all here is evidence that Jesus truly died. Now we know that the death of Jesus.
[16:31] Was death in all aspects of it. You know yourselves that death essentially in the Bible's teaching means separation. We think of death not just in terms of the separation of our soul and body.
[16:44] At the point of death in this world as we know it. The Bible's teaching is that death in its spiritual dimension is our separation from God. And that our separation from God everlastingly is in fact what hell is.
[16:59] That's really the teaching of scripture. Spiritual death in its everlasting eternal dimension is the death that hell as the Bible teaches us is.
[17:11] And Jesus already had died that spiritual death because he needed to be in bearing our sins to actually bear all that was attached to our sins in way of the wages of sin which is death.
[17:26] And he died that spiritual death. That separation from God on the cross before this. You know yourselves that the other gospels record the crying of Jesus from the cross.
[17:39] My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? There's the separation in spiritual death. And indeed it includes the everlasting nature of death.
[17:51] Jesus died the death of hell. Mysteriously beyond our comprehension. But he died everything that we deserve to face for our sins.
[18:03] He needed to face that and take that and he took it. But he also needed to experience and to die death in the physical sense. And it's important, I think we mentioned at an earlier occasion, the last verse of this chapter, that they put Jesus into this tomb.
[18:20] It doesn't just simply say that they laid his body there. It says since the tomb was close at hand, they laid Jesus there. The Son of God in his incarnate experience knows what death is.
[18:35] Knew what death was. Came to die spiritually on the cross and came to experience this aspect of death too in the separation of his human soul and human body.
[18:47] So that he was laid in the sepulcher. And this is now a testimony here to the reality of his death. When the soldier came and pierced his side, there came out at once blood and water.
[19:01] In other words, that's a testimony that that body was dead. There was no life in that body at that time. Medical opinion is divided as to what exactly this blood and water came from.
[19:16] Some are of the opinion that after death, that in the chest cavity, as blood and water or fluids gather there, that this is what happened when the soldier pierced his side, even if it didn't actually pierce his actual heart physically.
[19:34] Nevertheless, in that body cavity, there was gathered blood and fluid so that he saw what he calls blood and water proceeding from his side.
[19:46] In any case, whatever the medical reason for it is, whatever the medical opinion might be, whatever is accurate or otherwise in that, we're not able to go into that because we don't have that expertise.
[19:59] But for John, this was evident. He's not dealing with the medical side of it, of course. He's dealing with the spiritual side of it, with the significance of it spiritually. And what he's telling us here is evidence that he really did die.
[20:12] Now, why was that important to John when he wrote this gospel? Well, for one thing, there was a heresy going around at that time. Even in those early times, John was the last of the apostles.
[20:24] So by the time he died as an old man, untruth, false teaching, heresy had already come and entered into the church, different places. One of these was a heresy called the doketic heresy.
[20:38] It comes from a Greek word, doketia, which means to seem like something, to seem to be. And some people had come to the view that Jesus didn't actually have a true human body, only one that seemed to be human.
[20:54] Or even another aspect of that was that he didn't actually die. He only seemed to die. And therefore, of course, his resurrection couldn't be called a proper resurrection if he didn't properly die in the first place.
[21:08] So all of these things are actually involved, as John writes and as he presents us, with the theology of Christ's death. And incidentally, Islam to this day will tell you that Jesus didn't actually die, didn't actually really die.
[21:22] It was a seeming death. But John is saying, no, he did. Actually, properly, in the physical aspects of it, he died.
[21:34] Now, of course, our view of Scripture is, and we think rightly, of course, that it is the Word of God. And as the Word of God, it's been given by God, breathed out by God, as Paul says in 2 Timothy.
[21:49] All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, by being breathed out by God. It is his Word. That's why it's dependable. That's why you can trust it. That's why it's trustworthy. And in other words, when you read these things in the Scriptures, these incidents, what we're doing, what's happening to us really effectively is in our minds and in our spiritual thinking, we are transported back to the event.
[22:13] You're not just reading history. You're involved in that history simply because of the nature of Scripture. God is today taking us to Calvary. We're standing here looking up at the cross.
[22:25] We're actually seeing the soldier in our minds because of the trustworthiness of these details. We are seeing the soldier taking his spear and thrusting it into the side of Jesus.
[22:40] The soldier had no idea of the significance that his action would have for God's people. But God did, and John did.
[22:53] And so that's why he later on says when risen from the dead and Thomas was not at all willing to believe that Jesus was risen from the dead.
[23:07] You find it in the next chapter. You remember, of course, he said, Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails and place my finger into the mark of the nails and place my hand into his side, I will never believe.
[23:20] Then a week later, eight days, they were gathered again and Thomas was with them. And Jesus focused on Thomas. He knew what Thomas had said on the previous occasion. Though Jesus had been absent.
[23:35] And he says here that he said to Thomas, Put your finger here and see my hands. And put out your hand and place it in my side.
[23:49] Do not disbelieve, but believe. In other words, he's saying to Thomas, Yes, I did really die. And because I really died, I am really risen from the dead.
[24:01] It's a real resurrection from the dead. Here are the evidences of it. Unless you think of the Lord's Supper, whether you're going to be sitting at the Lord's table or just witnessing it, and if you're not going to be sitting, please do come.
[24:17] Because it is for you as well, even if you're just on this occasion going to be looking at the Lord's people as they actually take the communion and partake of the communion. It's so important for us as a congregation that we're actually there.
[24:30] That we're all actually, in some way or other, partaking in the service and in the service of communion. But when we come to take the cup and to take the bread and then take the cup, we are really taking in the sense of receiving to ourselves again this great fact, this great truth.
[24:51] And you can say to yourself as you receive these elements once again, you're renewing your conviction that this Jesus really died and that he died for the likes of you and I.
[25:06] And that's such an important thing in itself that you can say as you take the communion, my Lord, you did really die for me, though now you're risen again from the dead.
[25:24] Evidence that Jesus truly died. Secondly, here are two symbols of why Jesus died. Now, the blood and the water, we could really stretch the meaning of that so that it would be an unjustifiable application of it.
[25:41] But blood and water are so significant in the teaching of Scripture, both in the Old Testament and the New Testament. And in fact, in the Old Testament, you could really summarize the symbolism of the Old Testament by dividing it into these two categories, blood and water.
[25:58] The sacrificial blood that was used in the sacrifices that anticipated or represented the coming death of Christ and the water that was used in the symbolism of the Old Testament as well.
[26:13] The one to do, the blood to do with the death that was for sin, related to sin, and the water being the symbolism of cleansing or washing from sin.
[26:29] In other words, in the Old Testament religion, the Old Testament church, if you like, had these two symbols so frequently presented to them to bear before them the reality of a death for sin and a cleansing of sin.
[26:43] You have the altar and you have the laver, the washing, the great vessel of washing. You have the emphasis on death to take away sin and on the application of its benefits in the washing of us practically from sin.
[26:59] And here, these two elements for John are significant. The Lord's Supper sets forth the atonement of Jesus, but also it's connected to the result of that in our experience.
[27:14] The atonement of Jesus, the shedding of his blood, the death which he died, and the application of that in terms of the washing of our persons from sin, from its guilt and from its stain.
[27:29] It corresponds really, in a sense, to our justification and sanctification, where we're on the one that accounted righteous with God, by God in our justification, which we have by faith in Christ, not because of faith, but because of Christ.
[27:46] And sanctification, where the Holy Spirit cleanses us from our sin, washes us and deals with sin in us, so as we are progressively cleansed or washed from it in our practical living.
[28:00] And the two symbols here, as are used, blood and water, that came from the side of Jesus, remind us powerfully that our life, the life we have in our salvation, has been bought for us by the death of Jesus, by Jesus in his death.
[28:17] And the washing of sin that we have proceeds equally from the death that Jesus died. It's because of that death. It's because of what it is to God and what it means to God.
[28:28] It's acceptability to God. It's dealing with sin in every aspect of it absolutely and completely and totally and permanently. It's on that basis that we have forgiveness, that we have washing, that we have cleansing, that God cleanses us from our sins.
[28:47] Now in 1 John, let me just ask you briefly to go to 1 John with me. And you'll find these elements again referred to in 1 John and chapter 5 and verses 6 and 7.
[29:05] Talks here about testimony as well and Jesus being the Son of God in verse 5. Who is it that overcomes the world? Chapter 5 and verse 5.
[29:17] Except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God. This is he who came by water and blood. Jesus Christ. Not by water only, but by the water and the blood.
[29:30] And the Spirit is the one who testifies because the Spirit is true. So you can see the combination there of water and blood and testimony. There are differences but they're still the same three things that are mentioned in John chapter 19 in our text today.
[29:46] And as he talks here about Jesus, it's not easy to establish precisely exactly the full meaning of what he says. This is he who came by water and blood.
[29:56] Some commentators think that refers to Christ's own baptism and then also to his death. That Jesus came, the incarnate Son of God, his life in this world that was through water, through being baptized into his ministry and also by the blood, the death that he died, that he came into that.
[30:16] And while that may be true, it's also surely true that these are reminders to us of what John saw at the cross. That from the side of Jesus came blood and water.
[30:28] There were evidences for John. These were elements that really for him symbolized the atoning death of Jesus and the result of it in the cleansing of sin of his people.
[30:40] And that too is important to us. Jesus came by blood. It's not his example in the way he lived.
[30:53] It's not a quality of his life itself that provides us with an atoning sacrifice with God's provision to deal with our sin. Of course, his life, his perfect life is important.
[31:05] But it's his death that atoned for sin. The death he died. The shedding of his blood. He came not to give us an example as to how to live, though that is part of it.
[31:18] But he came primarily to die. To die the death of the cross. The death we remember and commemorate in the Lord's Supper. And he came by water because you don't find in the scripture anywhere the death of Jesus entirely separate from the cleansing effect and its application to us.
[31:40] The application of all that he has purchased in salvation by his death. That's always connected to his death, isn't it? You're never allowed really to think as you read the Bible of Christ's death simply on its own.
[31:54] Even though sometimes it may be mentioned on its own without a reference directly to his to our cleansing. But you always have to keep them together in the overall teaching of the atonement that Christ rendered to God by his death and the effect of that in its application, the application of what he purchased by it, the salvation, the life that he bought for us at such a cost as his death.
[32:22] The cleansing of our sins. And that's why he could say to Nicodemus in John chapter 3, you remember that famous passage where Nicodemus, a teacher in Israel but still didn't know these spiritual things as Jesus said to him, are you a teacher in Israel?
[32:43] Yet you don't know these things. What things? The things that Jesus had mentioned to him there. Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.
[32:56] Being born again means being born of water and of the Spirit. Why does he mention water? As well as the Spirit. Well, surely again because he associates the benefit or the result of Christ's death as the cleansing of sin.
[33:11] The Holy Spirit applying the redemption, the salvation that Jesus bought by his death to the extent that our lives in that are cleansed.
[33:22] We are cleansed from our sins. Augustus, top lady, a famous hymn writer, wrote the hymn Rock of Ages.
[33:37] It came about, we're told, one day he was sheltering from a squall and he found a niche or a cleft in a rock in a gorge in the Mendep Hills.
[33:50] And as he went into that big cleft in the rock, these words came to him that he then further penned at a later stage into the hymn that we have.
[34:01] But he began writing it out there as he sheltered from the storm and in that cleft of the rock. These words came to mind, Rock of Ages, cleft for me.
[34:12] Let me hide myself in thee. Let the water and the blood from thy riven side which flowed be of sin the double cure.
[34:24] Cleanse me from its guilt and power. Wonderful words. Cleanse me from its guilt and power. This blood and water as they symbolized for John what Christ's atonement would achieve that by his death we would be cleansed.
[34:46] That because of his death we would come to have forgiveness. we would come to know his cleansing. There came out blood and water.
[34:58] Thirdly, here is a direct connection with the Lord's Supper in 1 John chapter 5. Again, we notice there the witnesses that are mentioned or the Holy Spirit bearing witness or testifying to Jesus coming by water and by blood.
[35:13] In other words, when the Holy Spirit brings us to know our sin and to know God's provision for our sin, what does he do? How does the Holy Spirit deal with us as he blesses the word of God to us?
[35:26] As he impresses upon us our need of salvation, our need of forgiveness and cleansing, what does he do to us? Well, first of all, he takes us to the cross, doesn't he? He takes us to the death of Jesus.
[35:38] Takes us to the blood. Takes us to where sin was atorn for in the death of Christ. The Spirit bears witness to us that this Jesus came by blood, that his blood is significant in our redemption.
[35:57] It's basic, it's foundational. But as we said earlier, don't detach that from cleansing, from the water. He came by water and blood. And when the Holy Spirit brings us and has blessed his word to us and brings us to the cross, he doesn't leave you at the cross.
[36:13] He doesn't just leave you looking up and seeing blood from the side of Jesus. He brings you to know cleansing, forgiveness, acceptance with God because of what Jesus has done.
[36:29] Now, the Lord's Supper is in fact a channel of grace, a channel of God's grace, God's undeserved favor in his salvation working in our lives, the lives of all who have come to trust in him and to receive him and to take him as their Lord, as their Savior.
[36:49] The Lord's Supper is not primarily a means of witnessing to Jesus. It is that, there is that element to it, there is that side to it, but the Lord's Supper is first and foremost a provision made by God as a channel of his grace that we will receive more from him of this grace, of this salvation in its application to us, that we will receive an assurance or a greater assurance of his love and of his provision and of the death he died, that it will be even more confirmed to us that he did indeed die and that he died to save us from our sins.
[37:35] It's a channel and it's a channel of grace. It is itself a testimony to the death of Jesus and to why he died, to the blood and the water that literally flowed from his side and our symbolic of his death and our cleansing from sin.
[37:57] And so, it's so important to be there when we ought to be there. It's not that our lives are better than any others.
[38:10] It's not that we deserve to be there any more than others. It's not that we're saying in coming there that our lives are superior to others. It's not even that we're saying anything about ourselves primarily by being there, even though we are saying we love him and love him for what he's done.
[38:30] but it's primarily so that we receive through the Lord's Supper more of that life and of that assurance for which he died.
[38:46] So, when we take and eat we are saying in effect we're taking to ourselves spiritually what we find here literally described the blood and the water.
[39:00] We're taking to ourselves the benefits of Christ's death so that we will benefit from that. And we're saying by taking the communion my Lord died for me and I'm now receiving the benefits of it in forgiveness and cleansing in sanctification in further experience of communion with himself.
[39:27] that's, you see, why it's so important that we don't stay away from the table even if we have many misgivings about ourselves even if we can say have to say about ourselves that we think we're the least deserving of being there.
[39:47] That's fine. That's how we should think. but it's so important because it's not primarily that we're missing out on giving testimony to our love for Jesus but we are missing out if we don't come when we should be coming.
[40:06] We're missing out on such an important God-appointed channel of blessing so that we will find more of the significance of the blood and water in our own experience of that salvation that he died to procure for us.
[40:29] The soldier really had no idea of the significance of what he was doing but although in a sense as you read this you feel that it's really in some ways an abuse of the body of Christ and indeed in a sense it was.
[40:52] But you're thankful to God today that this soldier did this without having any idea of it having any religious or spiritual significance. You're thankful he did because if he hadn't John wouldn't have taken notice of the blood and the water and so you wouldn't have this rich vein of teaching that's connected to the cross.
[41:18] The atoning death of Jesus and the redemption that's then applied that comes from it in the water the cleansing of our sin.
[41:31] We're thankful he did what he did to the extent that we too can say with another hymn writer Francis J. Crosby I am thine O Lord I have heard thy voice and it told thy love to me but I long to rise in the arms of faith and be closer drawn to thee draw me nearer nearer blessed Lord to the cross where thou hast died draw me nearer nearer nearer blessed Lord to thy precious bleeding side and if that's your prayer today then you place us at the Lord's table in taking communion because nowhere else in this world are you closer to the bleeding side of Jesus let's pray
[42:32] Lord our gracious God we thank you for the richness of your word for the many ways in which it conveys to us the truth of our redemption and we thank you that that symbolism as it describes in the description that you give of these real events that they are so precious to us today as we anticipate the remembrance of your death in the communion Lord we pray that you would encourage us by thinking of these terms in such a way that would apply them to ourselves we pray that you would encourage us to continue to draw nearer to you and to seek that you would draw near to us we do pray that you would bless to us the communion that we anticipate and all the services associated with it and we pray that you would bless the ministers who will preach to us particularly we pray Lord for Mr.
[43:32] Miller and Mr. McLean we ask that you bring them in the power of your Holy Spirit and through them you would also speak to us and bring us again as you have done this morning to the reality of the cross to the through the perfection of your work and to its application to our needs receive our thanks now we pray and continue with us throughout this day for Jesus sake Amen let's conclude now by singing in Psalm 85 Psalm 85 this time it's in the Scottish Psalter on page 340 and we're singing verses 8 to 13 I'll hear what God the Lord will speak to his folk he'll speak peace and to his saints but let them not return to foolishness to them that fear him surely near is his salvation that glory in our land may have our habitation truth met with mercy righteousness and peace kissed mutually truth springs from earth and righteousness looks down from heaven high yea what is good the Lord shall give our land shall yield increase justice to set us in his steps shall go before his face these verses in conclusion let's stand
[44:54] I'll hear what God the Lord will speak to it forgive him be peace unto his saints but let them not return to foolishness to them will feel him surely near his salvation that glory in our land may have her habitation figue i house for to tour the graves for birth and ourican
[46:32] Looks now from heaven high Yea, what is good the Lord shall give Our lives shall yield and increase Justice who set us daily steps Shall go before His face After the benediction I'll go to this side door this morning.
[47:19] Now may the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you now and always. Amen. Amen.